THE JETTIES 

, ET£ (^q - and the - 

Mississippi River Improvement. 



GRAND BANQUET 



TO- 



CAP! JAMES B. EADS, 



BY THE- 



CITIZENS OF NEW ORLEANS. 



DECEMBER 6, 1882. 



TS2T 



NEW ORLEANS: 

W. B. STANSBURY & CO., PRINT, 58 CAMP STREET. 
1882. 



1 



GRAND BANQUET 



-TO— . 

/ 

/ 



CAPT. JAS. B. EADS, 



BY— 



REPRESENTATIVES 



-OF THE- 



Mercantile and Commercial Interests 



-OF THE 



CITY OF NEW ORLEANS. 



-GIVEN AT THE 



St. Charles Hotel, 

DECEMBER 6, 1882. 




NEW ORLEANS: 

W. B. STANSBURY & CO., PRINT, 58 CAMP STREET, 



was also, at each place, a card representing one of the animals, 
fish, flesh or fowl to be served, bearing the inscription: 



■n 



€^^<^€4- 



€■-' 









tailed, s^fr&Ut, 



New Orleans, December 6, 1882. 



The guests present were — 

Gen. A. S. Badger, 

A. Thompson, 

Gen. W. L. McMillen, 
S. H. Kennedy, 
J. G. Devereau, 
Jules Cassard, 
J. I. Day, 
I N. Marks, 
E. A. Burke, 
Capt. A. Chaleron, 
Capt. A. J. Carter, 
Col. Andrews, 
I H. Stauffer, 
T. J. Woodward, 
G. Pragst, 
Jno. H. Hanna, 
C. L. C. Dupuy, 
J. Tuyes, 

B. L. Wood, 
A. Luria, 
Wm. Flash, 
Jas. McConnell, 



J. A. Blaffer, 
Hy. Courtney, 
A. J. Landauer, 
W. J. Hammond, 
F. Eugster, 
L. Lacombe, 
C. C. Black, 
J. A. Stevenson, 
J. C. Eagan, 
Bobert Mott, 
Jas. Jackson, 
Chas. E. Fenner, 
Bradish Johnson, 
Bishop Galleher, 
Bishop Thompson, 
Father Hubert, 
David Jackson, 
J. C. Labatt, 
Will Coleman, 
Gen. Mexia, 
Geo. H. Boots, 
W. Kirkpatrick, 






Col. J. W. Glenn, 

A. A. Woods, 

B. M. Barrod, 
It. s. Boward, 
A. W. Bosworth, 

Gen \. Sheridan, 

By. J. Leovy, 

»r W. J. Behan, 
Morris, 

C. II. All.-,,. 
P. Wight, 
Lewis Johnson, 
.1. M. Sei 
Lottie Bush, 

W. B. Schmidt, 
Denis, 

K. B. Kruttsrlmitt. 

Chris. Mehle, 
.M. Lagan, 
.1. B. Lafitte, 
I' M. Ball, 



■ I. Schmidt, 
John A. Upsdell, 
B. L. Woods, -l 
Capt A. A. Martin, 
\\. L Martin, 
s. I.. Boyd, 
A. A. Pierson 
Jna Phelps, 
K. A. Palfxi 
A. Mitohell, 
G Forstall, 
A. Schreiber, 
(i. Carroll, 
T. L. Airey, 

J. L. Harris. 
A. Bobet, 

A. II. May. 

E. ( larriere, 
A. Baldwin, 

M. Maclieca, 



REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PRESS. 

New Orleans Times-Demoerai Page M. Baker, Richard 

Nixon. 

Orleans Picayune Bowman Mathews. 
New Orleans Daily City Item M. V. Bigney. 

New Orleans Daily Stales H. J. Hearsey. 



The guests began to assemble about 6 o'clock in one of the 
parlors leading into the ladies* ordinary ; at 6:30 o'clock 
they moved into the supper room under the inspiring influence 
music from the Washington Artillery Band. The dinner 
o an elegantly quiet manner, and was a mar- 
vel of culinary perfection. 



^— !. 






'H£L 



"y 



i menu; 

Little Neck Clams. 
CHATEAU YQUEM. 

I§otage6. 

Bisque of Clam, Consomme Chatelaine. 

AMONTILLADO. 

Hor6 d'geuvre, ' 

Petites Croustades, a la Pelissier, 

Olives, Radis. 

||oi66on. 

Pompano Grille, a la Royal, Fresh Codfish, Oyster Sauce, 

Potatoes eu Surprise, Cucumbers. 

LIEBFRAUMILCH. 

jleleve. 

Tenderloin of Beef, a la Rothschild, 

Saddle of Lamb, a la Chanceliere, 

Tomatoes, la Reine. 
G. H. MUMM'S EXTRA DRY. 

Entrees 

Sweetbreads Braized, a la Modern, 

Supreme of Chicken, a la Toulouse, 

Fresh Lobster Cutlets, a la Victoria, 
Cauliflower, New Green Peas, Asperges en Branches. 
VEUVE CLICQUOT POXSARDIN DRY. 

gorbet. 

AU VIN DE CHAMPAGNE. 

flame. 

Canvasback Duck, English Snipe, sur Cannape, 

Quail Truffe, Salade Assortie. 

CHATEAU LAFITTE. 

©lace. 



Bavarois Rubane, 



Pudding, a la Coburgh, 
Gelee Danzig, 

8eA6ert. 



Biscuit Tortonie. 



Fromages de Roquefort et Brie, 

CAFE. LIQUEURS. 



Fruits de Saison. 



k 



Report of the Proceedings. 



The committee, composed of Messrs. B. D. Wood, Jos. H. 
Oglesby, H. Dudley Coleman, A. K. Miller, A. C. Hutchinson, 
A. S. Gomila, W. I. Hodgson and H. M. Isaacson, were 
present and were untiring in their efforts to make the oc- 
casion the success it deserved. After the dinner had been 
thoroughly enjoyed Mr. J. H. Oglesby, who presided over 
the meeting, read dispatches from Gov. Lowry, of Mississippi, 
and from Gov. Crittenden, of Missouri, stating their regrets 
at not being able to be present. He then said that he 
was glad Capt. Eads had this opportunity of meeting the men 
who represented the commercial, manufacturing and material 
interests of the city. They did not believe for one moment that 
they could add to his renown, but they wished to extend to him 
this evidence of their appreciation of the good work he had done 
them. There was not a gentleman present who did not know 
that he had given to New Orleans a new birth. The speaker 
then referred to the time when he had himself violently opposed 
the jetty system. He then proposed the health of " Our Guest," 
to which Capt. Eads replied amid vociferous cheers: 

THE EEPONSE OF CAPT. JAS. EADS. 

Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen — I feel profoundly grateful for 
the cordial greeting you have been pleased to extend to me to- 
night, and for this magnificent banquet with which you have 
chosen to garnish your priceless welcome. But while my heart 
is overflowing with thanks for this touching evidence of your 
esteem, a still small voice within me whispers that this superb 
compliment, tendered, as it is, by so large a number of the rep- 
resentative men of this city and State, has a broader and deeper 
significance than that of a testimonial of personal friendship and 
regard for a single private citizen. I recognize in it an evidence 
of the deep-seated desire of the people of Louisiana to have the 
great inland sea which laves her shores cleared of every obstruc- 
tion and made safe and navigable from the Gulf of Mexico far 
into the distant States, from whence it receives its wealth of 
waters. I recognize also in this testimonial, and with intense 
pleasure, a tribute to the public spirit and enterprise of those 
who came forward with their money, influence, counsel and en- 






The Eads Banquet. 



couragement to sustain and complete at the South Pass the first 
important step in a plan of river improvements which, when 
fully executed, will make the valley of the Mississippi the most 
prosperous, wealthy and powerful empire on the face of the 
globe. 

Let us contemplate for a moment the extent and capacity of 
that greatly favored, and immense region, whose multitude 
of rivers, combined and concentrated, flow in such silent and im- 
pressive grandeur in the single channel that borders this city. 
Within that valley are 20,000 miles of navigable rivers, all seek- 
ing this route to the sea, while the territory which they pene- 
trate in every direction is thirteen times as large as the area of 
France was before it lost Alsace and Lorraine. If this territory, 
so favored by climate, soil and natural productions, were peo- 
pled as Belgium is to-day, it would contain 400,000,000 souls. 
Through the influence of your statesmen and others in the val- 
ley, aided by many whose homes are beyond its limits, and 
urged by an almost unanimous public sentiment, Congress has 
been induced to commence the improvement of the river* with 
vigor. For the portion below Cairo it has, on the advice of the 
Mississippi River Commission, adopted a, plan which is based 
upon the same general principles and methods of construction 
which have been applied in the improvement of the mouth of the 
river. As this plan differs in several important points from 
that of any other plan previously recommended for this part 
of the river, I will briefly explain these points of divergence. 

1. It proposes to bring the flood channel of the river to a com- 
parative uniformity of width, or parallelism, by the encourage- 
ment of deposits in the wide places, as a certain and only means 
of insuring the permanence of the low-water channel. 

2. It recognizes the importance of closing the outlets through 
which its flood waters escape, because by concentrating all of 
the flood waters in one channel a deeper low-water channel will 
result. 

3. It recognizes the fact that in proportion as the volume flow- 
ing in the channel is increased, greater erosion of the bed oc- 
curs; consequently the flood line takes a lower plane, and levees 



Report of the Proceedings. 9 

become less necessary. Other plans of improvement were recom- 
mended for the low water channel, by which it was believed 8 or 
10 feet depth could be secured, but such plans did not contem- 
plate correcting the flood channel, and could only have resulted 
in partial and temporary benefit. The levee system, as it is 
termed, looked only to the protection of the lands against over- 
flow. 

The plan adopted has stood the test of the most thorough sci- 
entific discussion and investigation, during the last seven or 
eight years, and it is sustained by the most indubitable proofs 
of its correctness by the results of works erected not only at the 
South Pass, but subsequently on the Mississippi river and else- 
where in the valley. When the river is corrected from Cairo 
down it will have a low-water channel at least twenty feet deep, 
1100 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico into the very heart 
of the immense empire referred to ; and its cost will not prob- 
ably exceed the value of one single crop of wheat on a tract of 
land forty miles square at a dollar per bushel. It would prob- 
ably cheapen the cost of getting such a crop to market ten cents 
per bushel. The total cost in such case would be repaid in ten 
years by the saving in transportation on the wheat crop of a farm 
forty miles square. There is territory enough in the Mississippi 
Valley that would be directly benefitted by this improvement to 
make 780 farms forty miles square, for its area is at least 1,250,- 
000 square miles. 

But it is unnecessary to dwell upon the importance of carrying 
20 feet of navigable depth from the sea 1100 miles inland into 
the heart of the continent, before an audience so exceptionally 
intelligent as the one whom I have the honor of addressing, even 
if it were in perfect taste to do so in a postprandial speech. I 
will, therefore, simply say, as an engineer, that it is entirely 
practicable to secure this result, and that when the river shall 
have been thus improved there will be but little need of levees 
in the alluvial basin of the river. 

Again I thank you for your cordial greeting and patient atten- 
tion. 

MUSIC, - "Hail Columbia." 

2 



j 2 The Eads Banquet. 



the committee, for the compliment of being requested to res- 
pond to this important toast. 



MUSIC. 



The toast to the Governor of Louisiana was responded to by 

MAJOR E. A. BURKE, 

who spoke as follows: 

Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen — I feel somewhat like a young 
man is said to feel when he makes his first experiment in deer 
hunting. I do not mean to say that I have the buck fever 
exactly, but I have a feeling that I can call by no better name 
than that of "Valley Fever." 

I know that I cannot do justice to the gentleman, who is pre- 
vented by public business from lending his presence on this oc- 
casion; but I know that if he were here he would feel as I feel. 
When I look into the face of the gentleman seated at the head 
of this table, and when I see around me the merchants and in- 
dustrial elements of the people who have met here to honor 
Capt. Eads this evening, I feel that if he were here, loving New 
Orleans as I know he loves her, loving Louisiana as I know he 
loves her, recognizing in his heart the great beneficent effects of 
the acts of this man, I know that he would gladly mingle his con- 
gratulations with ours, and gladly bear testimony to the great 
benefits that this State and this city have derived at his hands. 
In this age of steam, of electricity, of the railway, of the jetties, 
the great bridge, the ship railway, of engineering feats, of 
achievements in statesmanship, of vast agricultural develop- 
ments, in this age where thousands of men have written 
their name high upon the scroll of fame ; he would think with me> 
as a resident of this great Mississippi valley, that this man will 
be acknowledged in future years to have written his name 
higher than all. And why? Of all the great and grand benefits 
that we, of Louisiana, have ever received none has been of more 
advantage than the one given us by Capt. Eads. 

Abraham Lincoln, with a stroke of his pen, aided by the 



Report of the Proceedings. 13 



strong arms of two and a half million men, gave freedom to four 
million blacks, inhabitants of the South, James B. Eads, by the 
exercise of the God given genius vouchsafed him from above, 
and with the aid of a few thousand dollars has given freedom 
to twenty million inhabitants of the great valley. 

What I mean by the Valley Fever is this: I look at the line 
of that river, and though I may not live to see it, the day is com- 
ing, fast coining, when the smoke of the steamboat and the smoke 
of the steam car will be mingled along its banks from here to the 
Falls of St. Anthony. I see the day when the Star of Empire will 
pass from the East and stand over the Western bank of the Mis- 
sissippi river, when the great valley will assert itself, and the 
people of the South will assert themselves, when the vast and 
resistless number of men who are coming from over the ocean 
will have made the valley the centre of this continent. This I 
see also, that New Orleans will then arise in her majesty and 
might as the great commercial emporium for all this valley. If 
we have cause for congratulations now what must the men loving 
New Orleans and Louisiana feel when that day comes? And 
that day is fast approaching. But when it comes, Mr. Chair- 
man, who below Him who directs everything can we thank more 
than the man who enjoys our hospitality to-night? [Cries of 
"Nobody!"] It is to him that we owe the fact more than to any 
other living man that the mouth of this great river has been 
opened so that ships of the largest .calibre can find safety in 
their passage. It is due to him that Louisiana, the footstool of 
the valley, will be enriched, and New Orleans become the great 
emporium of the trade of the West and South. 



MUSIC. 



In responding to the toast to "The Judiciary," 

JUDGE' CHARLES E. FENNEK 

said, in substance: 

It would perhaps strike the casual observer that the toast 
did not, of itself, suggest remarks conspicuously appropriate 



io The Eads Banquet 



In response to the toast, " President Arthur," 

GEN. BADGER SAID I 

I r3gret the duty of responding to this toast has not fallen 
upon worthier shoulders. In thus honoring the Executive of 
this great nation, let it be remembered that the work which 
Capt. Ea Is has successfully carried out was commenced during 
the administration of President Grant, and by him encouraged 
and promoted so far as laid in his power. Under each succes- 
sive President since, the same aid and encouragement have been 
extended in furtherance of the work by the executive branch of 
the government. No doubt the magnificent results would have 
been much sooner accomplished had the legislative branch of 
our government shown at all times a like disposition to foster this 
great work of national improvement. When the problem of 
providing a deep-water outlet from the Mississippi River to the 
sea, through me"ans of the jetty plan, was first submitted to Con- 
gress there were many who regarded the scheme as chimerical, 
and so great was the fear that the construction of jetties might 
prove an obstruction to the channel then existing, that members 
were loath to go upon record as favoring the plan. Finally the 
best grant that could be obtained from Congress was authority for 
Capt. Eads and his associates to commence work at South Pass 
as an * experiment — mind you, as an experiment at South Pass, 
with eight feet of water in an unused channel.. 

Aided by public-spirited men, who believed in the success of 
the enterprise and had faith in his ability as an engineer, Capt. 
Eads commenced operations. And now behold the result ! 
Twenty-nine or thirty feet of water, sufficient for the largest 
craft afloat, where before only eight feet existed. 

In commenting upon the skill and enterprise of Capt. Eads, 
let us not forget his able lieutenant, Capt. J. E. Andrews. The 
greatest compliment that can be paid Capt. Andrews is that he 
is able to do whatever Capt. Eads says can be done. 

With pleasure I point to the fact that President Arthur, in a 
special message to Congress, urgently advocated and recom- 
mended a liberal appropriation for the improvement of the nav- 



Report of the Proceedings. 1 1 



igation of the Mississippi River. In his recent message, just 
flashed over the wires, he continues to advocate needful internal 
improvements, notwithstanding his general recommendations of 
reductions in the rev<. nuo and in the expenditures * of the gov- 
ernment. 

Our host, Col. Rivers, has decorated the walls of this magnifi- 
cent salon with drawings of the monuments to Capt. Eads' skill 
as an engineer, viz : the fc#. Louis bridge and the jetties at the 
mouth of the river. The value of these great works to the com- 
merce of the country, and especially that of the Mississippi Val- 
ley, cannot be estimated. The effect of deep water in this great 
natural artery, or inland highway, is already felt in the increas- 
ed imports to and exports from this city. New Orleans is grate- 
ful for the national aid extended to this great improvement of 
her commercial facilities, and is thankful to the executives, 
present and past, for the lively interest, powerful influence and 
substantial help ^iven to the enterprise. 

The drawing on the wall of the prospective Tehauntepec Ship 
Railway inspires me to express the hope that Congress in its wis- 
dom will give all reasonable aid to insure the construction of this 
great railway. Let it be an American work, aided by our govern- 
ment, backed by capital of the United States and protected by the 
power of this great republic. The DeLesseps canal, if cut 
across the Isthmus of Darien, is bound to be controlled and pro- 
tected by European governments, and this in spite of our boast- 
ed ' Monroe doctrine.' It was short-sighted policy for our gov- 
ernment to reject the propositions of DeLesseps, and later to sit 
idly by and see the work constructed by foreign capital, and 
under the auspices of foreign governments. I have such confi- 
dence in the engineering skill of Capt. Eads that I believe every 
engineering feat that he undertakes will be a success, and I say, 
Mr. Chairman, let the Tehauntepec Snip Railway at least be- 
come an offset to the Isthmus canal. 

The gestures of my friend, Gen. Sheridan, every ready to 
get upon his feet, admonish me that I am occupying more than 
appropriate time. I thank you, Mr. President, and gentlemen of 





14 The Eads Banquet. 



to the occasion of the banquet. He might, no doubt, escape 
criticism if, like some ministers he had heard — not, be it 
understood, the friend by his side, Dr. Thompson, or 
Bishop Galleher — he should take leave of his text at the 
moment of its announcement and return to it only at the fag end 
of his sermon. But he would not do so; he would stick to his 
text. The judiciary, though from its position cut off from active 
affairs, yet contemplates the developments of human thought and 
progress and material interests, with an interest not less keen 
than that felt by the busiest participants in the strife. Indeed, 
the concerns of trade, commerce and business in all their infinite 
variety, pass before the judiciary in a constantly shifting pano- 
rama, and the adjustment of their ever-varying relations forms 
the staple and subject of their most frequent and important oc- 
cupation. Therefore he did not feel out of place in an assem- 
blage like this, called to pay honor to.a man who had contributed 
so much to the development of the material interests of the 
country. 

Moreover, the judiciary has performed no unimportant part in 
bringing about that condition of affairs which rendered the im- 
provement of the Mississippi river by the general government 
possible. The Constitution of the United States declared that 
the judicial power of the government should extend to all cases 
of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. It was for a time held, 
and even decided by the courts, that this jurisdiction was only 
coextensive with the English admiralty jurisdiction, which was 
confined to tidal waters and was excluded from the body of any 
country. These limitations were natural in a country like Eng- 
land, limited in extent, and possessing no rivers admitting of 
navigation above the ebb and flow of tide. But have our courts 
observed the existence, not only of our great system of lakes, but 
of this mighty Mississippi river, bi-secting the continent, flowing 
through or by a multitude of States, and navigable for thousands 
of miles above the ebb and flow of tide with as complete ease 
and freedom as below that limit? The robust practical sense of 
the Federal judiciary did not hesitate to discard a test so out of 
harmony with reason and common sense, and decided that the 
admiralty jurisdiction extended to all navigable waters of the 



Report of the Proceedings, 15 



United States, regardless of tidal ebb and flow and of State or 
county boundaries. Thus the judiciary was the first branch of 
the government that asserted the national character of the Mis- 
sissippi river and made it the subject of national care and juris- 
diction. 

Another grant of power to the Federal government contained 
in the Constitution is the power to regulate commerce. This 
term, in its ordinary sense, might have been restricted within 
narrower bounds, but the judiciary so construed it as to hold 
that it embraced the power to regulate navigation and the in- 
struments and means of navigation and of commercial inter- 
course between citizens of the different States, and, necessarily, 
to include the power of facilitating such commerce, navigation 
and intercourse, and for that purpose to maintain, improve and 
extend the navigable qualities and facilities of rivers. 

He was not disposed to inflict upon them a law lecture or he 
might cite other powers of the government which had been judi- 
cially construed and interpreted in a like sense and direction. 

He thus showed that the judiciary had rendered important 
service to the cause of Mississippi improvement by removing out 
of its way all legal obstacles to the exercise of the power and 
duty of the genera] government in the premises. 

Judge Fenner proceeded to say that he had heard with delight 
the serious and positive assertion just made by the distinguished 
guest as to the practicability of the plan of the improvement of 
the Mississippi, which had been recommended by himself and 
adopted by the River Commission. The judiciary was accus- 
tomed to weigh and value evidence. He thought the positive 
opinion and testimony of a man who had such confidence in his 
own theories and judgment that he had been willing to risk a 
million and a-half of money of himself and friends upon their 
correctness, and who had demonstrated the same, as he had done 
at the jetties, was justly entitled to confidence and great weight. 
He, for one, felt such confidence and, he believed it was shared 
by the people of the Mississippi valley. If the task proposed 
should be accomplished, if the uniform depth of 20 feet can be 
established and maintained in the river, and that depth attained 
by the scouring of the bottom, so that the flood of its waters 



1 6 The Eads Banquet, 

could be accommodated and discharged without overflow of its 
banks, he knew not of any achievement which would be grander 
or more beneficent in its consequences. The effect would be, 
practically, to extend the shores of the ocean from the Gulf to 
St. Louis ; shores everywhere landlocked, and affording harbors 
where the fleets of earth may float secure from all commotions of 
the elements; shores whose ports lie not far distant from each 
other, and separated by wastes of waters, but thickly dotted and 
closely neighboring each other ; shores and ports whose natural 
quays surpass those which all the skill and labor of man have 
been able to construct in the greatest commercial emporiums of 
the earth. Along these shores, and tributary to the commerce of 
this inland sea, would lie the peerless valley, which, liberated 
from the scourge of invading floods, would form a seat of empire 
unparalleled in ancient or modern times. 

Judge Fenner professed his inability to draw a fitting picture 
of the results of the success of such an enterprise, but said that 
if it were accomplished it would be the verdict of this and of suc- 
ceeding generations that on the roll of the benefactors of man- 
kind no name would fill a higher place than that of James B. 
Eads. 

MUSIC, - - - "Red, While and Blue." 



THE REV. HUGH MILLER THOMPSON 

was called upon to respond to "The Clergy," which he did in 
the following handsome manner : 

Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen — My friend, Mr. Burke, has 
confessed to an attack of the " Valley Fever." With me it is a 
chronic case. I have had the Valley Fever for 30 years. 

The tone of the speaking here to-night is very familiar. It is 
the genuine Valley brag. But it has the reality behind it. It is 
the brag that has settled the Northwest, laid 20,000 miles of rail- 
road and built Chicago! 

The rest of the world stands sometimes aghast at it, sometimes 
amused at it. But we who know are fully aware that no words 



Report of the Proceedings, 17 



of ours can express our conception of the possible might and 
grandeur that awaits this centre of a continent which yonder 
great river drains. 

Thomas Carlyle was not an excitable man, except when he had 
a more than usually severe attack of dyspepsia, and then he 
wasn't enthusiastic, save in Hcmeric denunciation, but Thomas 
Carlyle, apropos of the Malthusian fear of the world's over popu- 
lation, made a mathematical calculation that the Mississippi val- 
ley could raise corn enough, at the moderate estimate of 30 
bushels to the acre, to feed ten times, I believe, the present 
population of the world! 

The way in which the wealth, the power and the population of 
the United States is pouring into the heart of this great 
river's slope is something unimaginable by our friends on the 
borders. 

I said and put in print, years ago, that unless by an accident, 
like that which occurred lately, there would never again be a 
President from East of the Alleghanies. Since 1860 the chief 
magistrate has been a Valley man. Only an accident makes 
it now otherwise. I dare stand by the prophecy, because here 
politics are national, in the East they are sectional. The heart 
of the land must lead the land. The typical American has his 
roof-drip drain into the Mississippi, and more and more the 
power and the numbers and the genuine Americanisms grow 
where the cotton and the corn grow. 

I charge nothing for my advice. If there are politicians here, 
and I have heard it whispered that there are, let me say if you 
want to get a President nominate a Valley man. Should you 
even elect another you can't get him inaugurated. If you doubt 
that ask Mr. Tilden, of Gramercy Park, New York. 

That the inland sea, 20,000 miles in length of navigation, and 
draining the richest territory on the globe, is national, and to be 
cared for and considered nationally, seems self-evident to those 
of us who have lived on its watershed from St. Paul to the 
Passes. Whatever be the politics of sectional politicians, that is 
the dumb conviction of the people. 
3 



1 8 The Eads Banquet. 

Well do I remember, in the far Northwest, the emotion felt 
and acted on when that great gaunt American of the valley, 

41 Whose words were rife 
With ragged maxims hewn from life." 

staggering with a staggering load under the awful burden of an 
awful war, gave voice to the people's dumb conviction in those 
memorable words, which to him and them expressed the justifi- 
cation of their cause, " The great river must run unvexed to the 
sea." 

The Northwest gave its blood like water to keep the river open 
from Itasca to the Gulf. It was the national cause they felt, for 
the river was national. And now, for the same end, shall a bit 
of money be begrudged, when the harvest of the river's waves, 
as we all work and pray for, is food and clothing, plenty and 
peace, the world's bread and covering, and no longer the terrible 
harvest that is plowed for by the cannon shot and mowed by the 
rifle's leaden sleet? 

We here honor as our guest a man who has grasped the cen- 
tral conviction, that the zone that binds the land's heart must be 
unbroken, and who, in deeds, down yonder at the South Pass, 
has written out Abraham Lincoln's words in a happier hour and 
with happier instruments — " The great river must run unvexed 
to the sea." 

But I am to speak to the toast, " The Clergy," and I have not, 
it would be thought, anywhere else, spoken with much bearing 
on such a word. Here, however, where your clergy are accus- 
tomed to be men and citizens, as well as clergymen, when you 
take them with you in all that is the common interest and honor 
them at all your civic feasts, you do not think it strange that one 
of them should not forget that he is a man of the valley, a Lou- 
isianian, an Orleanian, and that your interests are his own. 

We, however, can well trust to such men as I see about me to 
develop grandly the material interests of our splendid heritage. 
The central interest in it all, to us of the clergy, is the fact that 
to be anything but a curse, this vast material power comes, and 
swiftly coming, must be consecrated by religion and devoted 
to man's service and the Lord's. 

The great cities will grow, no fears! Yon broad, towering, 



Report of the Proceedings. 19 

shining river will be plowed by thousands of laden keels. The 
great trees will wave over homes where there iis plenty and peace. 
What we of the clergy are toiling for, and you know it and 
help us, and recognize the supreme importance of our work, is 
the need that the land's heart should fear the Lord, that the 
church -spire should rise above the factory chimney, that the cross 
should gleam above the great city's dust and smoke, that the 
bells should call to prayer, and that, under the blessing of God, 
the sacred and eternal truths taught at altar and in pulpit should 
fill this good land with honest, brave, manly, God-fearing men, 
and pure, true and faithful women. So shall it be God's coun- 
try as well as ours. 

MUSIC, - - - - " Auld Lang Syne." 



MR. J. R. LANDAUER, 

in responding to the toast to "The New Orleans Cotton Ex- 
change," said : 

After listening to the eloquent speeches of my friends, Major 
Burke and the Rev. Dr. Thompson, who seemed somewhat under 
the influence of buck and valley fever, I feel affected in the same 
way, evidently for the reason that the disease is epidemic. Re- 
ferring to the remark of the reverend doctor as regards bragging 
or brag, I fear that we commercial men know less of that accom- 
plishment than clergymen generally do. We claim better ac- 
quaintance with a similar science, known as draw. But I think, 
on the present occasion, I had better hand in my checks and res- 
pond to the toast. I need hardly say that the interests of the 
cotton trade of the entire Mississippi valley are identical with 
those, the great project of which the guest of this occasion is the 
successful originator. It is not necessary to dive into dry statis- 
tical records merely to show what percentage of the great staple 
is growing in the valley proper. 

Suffice it to say that the navigable condition of the great high- 
way to the sea not only affects the transportation rates for cot- 
ton, but a tremendous proportion of all exportable articles of 
produce grown and marketed in this section. The New Orleans 



20 



The Eads Banquet. 



Cotton Exchange is a body constituted for harmonizing the in- 
terests involved in cotton production and manufacture. Its 
objects are to promote the cultivation and trade of this staple, 
which has become essential to the comfort and welfare of many- 
nations and many peoples, and, furthermore, to guard and har- 
monize all interests connected therewith. It is not fitting that I 
should, on such an occasion as this, enter into details which are 
familiar to all present. Still, I can only state that the great 
works accomplished by our honored guest have brought about 
such a great change by facilitating the handling of cotton in this 
market that all cotton growers, traders and consumers of America 
fully appreciate and acknowledge the genius of the man whose 
efforts in the past have contributed so much to their success. 

When we look back six years ago and find steamships and 
sailing ships coming to this port for the purpose of taking away 
a small cargo of say from 3000 to 4000 bales of cotton, and 
when we find many of these with a maximum draft of 18 to 19 
feet, spending a week or two at the bar, thus blockading at 
times for days and days the port of New Orleans, and when we 
now find steamers carrying twice and even three times the 
amount of cargo, leaving our ports on a draft of 23 or 24 feet, 
and I know of one instance, one particular steamer drawing 24 
feet and six inches, where Plimsoll's mark was entirely out of sight 
— then we all must admit that the jetties, of which our honored 
guest is the successful originator, have done wonders for the 
port of New Orleans. Another great advantage of deep water 
at the jetties, and which affects the article of cotton, both di- 
rectly and indirectly, grows from the fact already mentioned, 
that when in former years it would hardly pay a steamer to load 
at a half -pence rate, abundance of tonnage now seeks our port 
to load at much lower rates. This great steam line communica- 
tion, which has been trebled ' in the past six years between the 
port of New Orleans and those of Havre, Liverpool, Bremen, 
Antwerp, Barcelona and other Mediterranean ports, had the 
effect of diverting large quantities of cotton and other exporta- 
ble articles to this port, which, in former years, were shipped 
on through bills of lading by our New York, Boston and other 
Eastern seaports. 



Report of the Proceedings. 



2 I 



The fact of bringing larger vessels to this port has also 
brought about a revolution in the loading of vessels; for experi- 
ence has taught us that vessels of larger tonnage, with a carry- 
ing capacity of 7000 bales of cotton, can fee loaded just as fast as 
smaller ones of a carrying capacity of 3000 bales. These advan- 
tages we should never have enjoyed had these jetties proved a 
failure. However, I shall not dwell any longer on this subject, 
for I have no doubt several gentlemen who are waiting for me 
to sit down and ready to respond to their own toasts will likely 
enter again upon the same subject, and no doubt will handle it 
more satisfactorily than I have been able to do. 

In conclusion, however, I can only say that the Cotton Ex- 
change of this city acknowledges and appreciates the great 
works of the jetties, and more especially the great change said 
works have brought about. And furthermore, they appreciate 
""the efforts of our honored guest in the past, which have con- 
tributed so largely to the success of this port, and whose con- 
tinuous efforts bid fair to give this section an era of prosperity 
such as the lower vail ay has never witnessed even in its palmiest 
days. As to myself, personally, I confess I had little faith six 
years ago in the success of the jetties, but I rejoice to say that I 
have been sadly mistaken. And the works now in hand by 
Capt. Eads will no doubt prove as successful as those jetties, for 
I have as much faith in the engineering skill of Capt. Eads as I 
have in the diplomacy of Bismarck. 



MUSIC, 



Dixie." 



MR. BLAFFER 

replied to the toast to " The Mechanics, Dealers and Lumbermen's 
Exchange," as follows: 

Mr. Chairmen and Gentlemen— As you have been charmed by 
the eloquence and wit of the gentlemen who have spoken before 
me it would be folly in my humble capacity to attempt more than 
a few remarks. 

There are few projects conceived and executed for a grand 



2 2 The Eads Banquet. 



purpose wherein the full benefits can be realized at once. The 
greatest truths are the simplest, yet it requires a master mind, 
replete with genius, to practically and successfully demonstrate 
them. 

The opening of our national highway has already proven a 
boon to the South, and e'er long we will be able to welcome the 
tide of prosperity which will flow from its source. Of the many 
classes of citizens who have already experienced its advantages 
I know of none wdio have been more benefited than the mechan- 
ics and lumbermen of this city, whom I have the honor to repre- 
sent on this occasion, and we recognize in the achievement of 
this grand work of our distinguished guest a lever of commer- 
cial improvement and a power that will move with increased 
strength in proportion as our resources develop. 

Not wishing, however, to tire you with a multitude of words, I 
will now, in the name of the Mechanics, Dealers and Lumber- 
men's Exchange, tender you multitude of thanks. 



i 

MUSIC ... . "Anvil Chants" 



GENERAL MEXIA 

was called upon for a speech, whereupon he delivered the fol- 
lowing : 

We meet to honor the great engineer, whose name will stand 
unfbrgotten as long as the Mississippi flows ; his monuments 
will record a work which is a blessing to millions, and develop 
a wealth dormant for ages in the valley divided by the " Father 
of Waters." These, immense as they are, are overshadowed by 
one of the mightiest undertakings of any time, which, in the 
boldness of conception, is unequalled — the ship railway across 
the Isthmus of Tehuantepec ; the benefits to inure to commerce. 
nay, to mankind, are incalculable. Land and mountains o 
fcobe ;i barrier to navigation, and two oceans are united by bands 

of steel ; mighty vessels will take their almost serial flight aei 

the wonder of the tropics, and with their hulls scarcely dry of 
the fragrant waters of the Gnlf , will cleave the waters of the 



Report of the Proceeding's. 



2 3 



Pacific. Shall I ask which city of the world will be most en- 
riched by the wonder of engineering? I see by your flashing 
eyes that the name dearest to you is in your mind and you will 
echo after me — " New Orleans." The whole world will be the 
gainer, and it is almost impossible to grasp the revolution this 
trans-isthmian route will cause to civilization and trade. Mexico 
received him with open arms, and a concession unparalleled in 
liberality and confidence was granted him. Two great works 
were committed to his skill — the improvement of the ports of 
Vera Cruz and Tampico — and the plans submitted by him are 
being executed. I propose, gentlemen, " The health of Capt. 
Eads ; may he long be spared to us, to consummate his grand 
designs." 

MUSIC. 



MAJOR HARROD S SPEECH 

Was as follows : 

" I am obliged to you for your assigning to me the answer to 
this toast to the Mississippi River Commission. The toast is 
appropriate as a part of the compliment now extended to our 
honored guest. As you all know, the Mississippi River Com- 
mission was appointed shortly after Capt. Eads had proved, 
by his achievement of the South Pass Jetties, that the 
Mississippi river was amenable to laws as clearly defined and 
firmly established as those governing all the other operations of 
nature, and also that much progress had been made in the dis- 
covery and practical application of these laws. 

The time has gone by when intelligent men see anything but 
eloquence in the oft-quoted remark of Mr. Prentiss, to the effect 
that God subjected all of His created universe to the dominion 
of law, except the Mississippi river, which he had turned loose, 
to go where it pleased. 

How has this change of conviction, from fatalism to faith and 
works, been brought about ? I am glad to have the opportunity 
of answering this question, by paying tribute to the services of 
the men to whom the change is mainly due, for their labors have 



24 7Vie Eads Banquet. 



developed the only principles upon which any success in the im- 
provement of the Mississippi river can ever be founded, and dis- 
closed the scientific secrets which our distinguished guest threw 
open our port free to the deep-laden commerce of the world, and 
which he, with his associates of the River Commission, now pro- 
pose to apply to the larger undertaking, but logical sequence of 
the jetties, the improvement of the river itself, in its united 
channel, in its thousand miles of length, in its vexed and scanty 
low waters, and in the rage of its floods. 

In the decade preceding the war, three men of great natural 
ability, high professional culture and thorough familiarity with 
the Mississippi river, announced and enforced, in numer- 
ous papers, full of vigor and learning, the theory that the river 
was the architect of its own habitation — which it wonderfully 
adapted to its habits and its wants — enlarging here, contracting 
there, and remodeling everywhere, with" the power and materials 
it always had at hand. I speak of Gen. Barnard, of the United 
States Engineers, of Mr. G. W. K Bayley, and of Prof. For- 
shey. At that time these men well nigh closed the controversy, 
which had raged for many years, between the levee and the out- 
let men, in favor of the former. For although the great work 
of Humphreys and Abbott appeared at the end of this period, 
advocating other views, it commanded respect by the extent and 
fidelity of its labor, but failed to enforce its doctrine on the en- 
gineering thought and practice then and since engaged on the 
river ; and no successful work has ever been done on the river 
but by accepting its own forces and materials as the proper and 
sufficient ones, and by using them obediently to its peculiar 
laws. 

After the war came the time for work, and with the time came 
the man. The principles of hydraulic engineering 'propounded 
by the fathers of the profession in the Old World, expounded 
and adapted to sedimentary rivers, and to the Mississippi in par- 
ticular, by Barnard and Bayley, were practiced and enforced by 
Eads — and we have it now in sure possession, that the Mississip- 
pi river can be improved, that the vastness of . its forces can be 
trained to accomplish vast results in the direct interests of com- 
merce, and that a careful study of and fidelity to the subtle but 



Report of the Proceedings. 25 

immutable principles of sedimentary hydraulics will extend, 
cheapen and render safe your navigation, moderate your floods 
and reclaim your lands. 

In further instance of the successful application of these prin- 
ciples, I refer to the splendid improvement of about twenty 
miles of the Mississippi river below St. Louis by Capt. Ernst, 
of the United States Engineers. 

With these examples before us, and laying fast hold of the 
truth which is taught by the river itself, the Mississippi River 
Commission hopes to accomplish the great task imposed upon it. 
We are well aware that the work is arduous and may be slow 
and costly. We therefore invoke the kindly patience and sup- 
port of the friends of the great river. If we fail, others following 
us will succeed by the more expert application of the same prin- 
ciples and methods which we have recommended. It is your 
duty to see that the best care of the government and the best 
skill of the engineers is given to the work. 

The obligations conferred by the great men who have studied 
and worked on the river extend over the entire Mississippi Val- 
ley, but they are centered in New Orleans. We are here to- 
night representing her, to acknowledge that part of them due 
by us to our honored guest, Capt. J. B. Eads. 

These obligations also extend, in a peculiar degree, to the 
commission of which I have the honor to be a member ; for by 
the light of their learning and work we hope to trace the perma- 
nent, easy and safe pathway of an improved river. In behalf of 
the commission I heartily avail myself of this opportunity of 
acknowledgment of these obligations and at the same time to 



thank 

Mr. 

honor 

toast— 

4 


you, gentlemen, for the compliment of the toast. 


the 

the 

vish 


MUSIC, - - "Star Spangle Banner," 


A. K. MILLEK. 

President and Gentleman — While I appreciate 
conferred upon me in thus naming me to reply to 
-"The Shipping of the Port," I can only say, I a 



26 The Eads Banquet. 



you had called upon some one more worthy to reply to a sub- 
ject of so much importance. There has been so much talent ex- 
hibited here to-night in the remarks of the able gentlemen who 
have preceded me, that, to use a nautical expression, "So many 
lofty frigates have passed to windward of me carrying such a 
press of canvass, that I feel that the wind has been taken com- 
pletely out of my sails." 

I will say, however, that I consider the English language in- 
capable of expressing what the commerce of this port owes to 
Capt. Jas. B. Eads, for his labor in its behalf ; therefore, as I am 
no speaker, I take courage from the fact that words cannot do 
the subject justice and feel encouraged to say something. 

If I cannot speak eloquently on the subject, I certainly can 
speak feelingly, for I presume there is no one present here to- 
night that has experienced more annoyance, detention and ex- 
pense from obstacles at the mouth of the Mississippi river than 
myself. I notice the artist has very graphically delineated 
upon yonder wall a sketch of the jetties, and some of the events 
which have transpired in days gone by — especially those words 
issuing from the smoke stacks of the tugboats, $100 per hour — 
Gentlemen, I have been there, and have paid those sums various 
times, and once paid $3500 to get the steamship Alabama across 
the bar at Southwest Pass. I also have laid aground on that same 
bar, during my experience as a navigator to and from this port, 
as long as 45 days at a time. 

Thanks to the skill, energy and perseverance of Capt. Eads, 
this has passed away. When he first came among us he found 
obstacles that were numerous — and I see quite a number of 
those aforesaid obstacles here to-night- -but be it known to their 
everlasting credit, that when they found they were in error, they 
had the sense of justice and manhood to acknowledge it, and 
came to the front to do all in their power to assist the man they 
previously opposed ; and judging from the manner in which 
they have swept all before them this evening, I feel quite sure 
they would in like manner sweep away all enemies or opponents 
that might appear to interfere with our worthy guest or his 
undertakings. 

Our worthy Collector of the Port has alluded to the energy 



Report of the Proceeding 



ps. 



and skill of Capt. Eads' executive officer, Capt. Andrews. I can 
endorse his remarks; they are well-merited. I had the misfor- 
tune to have one of the "Inman Line" steamers, for which I was 
agent at the time, get aground at the head o fthe passes. It was 
the steamship "City of Limerick." 

This accident occurred while the jetties were in process of 
construction and before the wing dams were completed at the 
head of the Pass. This ship eventually got over the shoal spot 
and into deep water, but her propeller was found to be slipped 
and useless. All that appeared to be done was to discharge the 
cargo, lighten the steamer, tow her to the city and further dis- 
charge cargo, tip her by the head and place a stern dock under 
her and make the repairs. Having while a member of the com- 
mittee on obstruction from our Chamber of Commerce, visited 
the jetties at various times, and while there observed the energy 
displayed by Capt. Andrews in all his undertakings, it occurred 
to me that he could build a stern dock on the spot and thereby 
make the necessary repairs. Although repeatedly warned by the 
knowing ones of our city, that such a thing was impracticable 
with such a deep loaded ship, (23 feet was her draft), also that 
the current was too strong, etc., I thought differently, for I con- 
cluded I knew my man, and accordingly telegraphed Capt. An- 
drews, asking him what he would charge to build a stern dock, 
place it under the steamer where she lay, repair the damage 
and in what time he would guarantee to have the work done. 

The answer was prompt and characteristic of the man, and the 
sum named was so low and the time so short, that I immediately 
forwarded what was probably the shortest dispatch on record in 
way of closing a contract; the words were "Go ahead." I can 
only add he did go ahead and the work was done inside of the 
specified time, the noble ship sailing on her voyage and arriving 
safely at her destined port. 

In this connection I would say a word in behalf of our sailing 
ship friends as well as our steam marine. It was often re- 
marked that the jetties would, if successful, damage the sailing 
ships' interests, in consequence of the increased draft of water 
permitting large steamers to absorb the trade. 

I would remind my sailing ship friends, however, that were it 



The Eads Banquet. 



not for the jetties they could not possibly load the same ships 
that were in the trade previous to the completion of the jetties, 
to their full capacity with cotton and get them to sea, had they 
still to depend upon the same condition of the bar and assistance 
of towboats. Owing to present improved cotton pressing, ships 
now carry so much more cargo than formerly that with the draft 
they now obtain they could not possibly have passed the bar. 

I would also state that the sailing ships in port to-day are ob- 
taining in some cases higher rates of freight than the steamers 
now loading. 

Let us hope, gentlemen, that the jetties at the mouth of our 
river may long remain and stand as firm as the grand old bridge 
build by our illustrious guest at St. Louis. May they remain, I 
say, and remind the mariner while passing to and fro on that 
highway to the sea, of what commerce owes to Jas. B. Eads. 

And to all the opposers, calumniators and doubters of Capt. 
Eads' enterprise, I say to them let them go to the wharves of 
our city and there look upon the large ships and steamers de- 
parting daily and carrying, as. they do, the products of the Mis- 
sissippi valley, the millions of bushels of grain, bales of cotton, 
bags of oil cake, bearing away through the highway his genius 
has built out into the Gulf, thence to the broad Atlantic, and 
feeding the world. In this they will find, far beyond what lan- 
guage can express, an answer to their doubts and fears. 

And a more eloquent tribute to what we all owe to Capt. 
Eads cannot be better conveyed than is there before us, and in 
conclusion, in the name of the shipping of the port, I cordially 
thank Capts. Eads and Andrews for the energy, skill and perse- 
verance, they have exerted to secure for the shipping a highway 
to the sea. 

MUSIC, - - "Life on the Ocean Wave." 



In response to the toast — " The Press," 

M. F. BIGNEY, 

of the City Item, spoke as follows: 

The Press is as deeply interested in the improvement of the 
navigation of the Mississippi as any profession or class of citi- 



Report of the Proceedings. 



29 



zens can be. Moreover, almost every journalist considers him- 
self a civil engineer, and though frequently hoisted by his own 
petard, he usually gathers up the fragments and takes a new de- 
parture. Such was the case with our local journalists who, for 
the most part, adopted the Fort St. Philip canal scheme in op- 
position to the projected jetty system, and are now compelled to 
speak approvingly of the once condemned jetties. I, however, 
take the liberty of making an exception on my own behalf, for I 
was a jettyite before I knew that Captain Eads was one. 

As I understand the situation here this evening, we are called 
together to discuss a triune engineering problem. The first 
branch relates to the good things, material and spiritual, pro- 
vided by the bounteous Rivers of this magnificent establish- 
ment; the second, to the splendid river system which brings us 
from afar the very ground we stand upon and renders this low- 
land delta habitable ; and the third, though by no means the 
least, to pay fitting honors to the illustrious civilian who has 
been authorized by the government to perform certain dental 
operations in the mouth of that venerable gentlemen known, 
poetically and otherwise, as the Father of Waters. [Laughter.] 

The good things provided have already been measurably 
disposed of, and so much has been said of the engineering tri- 
umphs of the guest of the evening that I will merely add : He 
has carved his name on them as on a rock, and he stands on 
them as on a mounment. 

But of the great river and its tributaries, which stretch 



" Away 

To the distant lakes where the north winds play — 
To the distant mountains whose rocks, indent, 
Are the vertebrae of a continent, " 

no eloquence of words can tell the entire tale. The alluvial 
land brought to us by this wonderful river is so rich that you 
have but to " tickle it with a hoe, and it will laugh with har- 
vests." Send down the exploring auger at any point in the 
lower delta, and at fifty feet you find an illuminating gas ; send 
it down in one of the coast islands, and you discover an inex- 
haustible store of almost pure salt ; send it down at another 



The Eads Banquet. 



point, and you are rewarded with an immense store of native 
sulphur. 

But when this rich region was first visited by Europeans it 
was subject to annual inundations. The errors or eccentricities 
of nature had to be corrected by walling out the waters before 
it could be regarded as a safe abiding place. This has already 
in part been accomplished, but more must yet be done. 

If we roll back the tide of time sufficiently far, and examine 
the testimony of the rocks, we may, in imagination at least, reach 
a period when the Mississippi was a clear water stream, wholly 
without a delta. The sediment of the upper rivers was then 
percipitated in a vast inland sea, whose bed now forms the great 
prairies of the West. At length the inland sea burst the bar- 
rier presented by the Ozark chain, and with the mad rush of the 
released waters the delta began to form. The deposit would at 
first take the form of twin tongues of land extending out into the 
sea, and the natural course of the stream would be straight on- 
ward. But a slight obstruction on this side or that would alter 
its course; an obstruction in the centre would increase its width 
and perhaps cause the formation of an island, while two obstruc- 
tions, opposite each other, and acting as converging jetties, 
would concentrate the scouring power of the current and deepen 
the channel between them. 

These are nature's hints for the solution of the great engineer- 
ing problem of the Mississippi, and upon these hints Capt. Eads 
has acted, and still proposes to act, in correcting the eccentricities 
of the great river with which his name has become so completely 
identified. 

The advantages of the proposed improvements are by no 
means confined to the lower delta, and in contemplating them we 
are prompted to widen our views and exclaim : 

" Land ol the torrent and the rock, 

The dark blue lake aud mighty river ; 
Of mountains, reared aloft to mock 

The lightning's flash, the thunder's shock : 
Our own, our native land forever !" 



MUSIC. 



Report of the Proceedings. 31 



BISHOP GALLEHER, 

being called upon by the chairman, spoke very briefly, saying : 
" The last time I dined in this room I came to meet the Chief 
Justice of the United States. I have come to-night to meet the 
Chief Engineer not only of the United States, but of America. 
Our accomplished and distinguished guest has received at your 
hands to-night many well-merited tributes to his ability and 
worth. He appears to me in one capacity that has not been 
mentioned. I mean as a missionary. He has conveyed some 
very useful information to many people, and notably to the 
editor of the Cincinnati Commercial. He has taught success- 
fully that this harbor of New Orleans is not barred to com- 
merce. He not only said he could open the choked mouth of 
the Mississippi — he did it. I am glad to be associated with those 
who come to do him honor. 

" Since entering the room he has told me that my beloved 
predecessor assured him, during the progress of his work at the 
jetties, that he prayed to God daily to preserve the life of the 
man who was engaged in that mighty labor for the benefit of all 
this people. 

" Suffer me to add that such an attitude was characteristic of 
that dear and venerable man, for throughout this commonwealth 
there has been not one who loved Louisiana more deeply or 
cherished her people's interests more constantly than did Joseph 
P. B. Wilmer. Sweet and honored be his rest ! 

" Gentlemen — The discovery of the mouth of the Mississippi 
was made by a Christian man, and his first act was to plant the 
cross — the symbol of the Christian faith. It was prophetic, and 
so long as the great river ripples its music to the Gulf, the voice 
of its waters will tell of the gospel of peace and of the patriot- 
ism and devotion of Christian men." 



MUSIC. 



Father Hubert, Bradish Johnson, Esq., Gen. George A. Sheri- 
dan, Col. James Andrews and Messrs. B. S. Howard and Jno. 
A. Stevenson all made brief and eloquent responses on being 
called upon by the presiding officer. 



32 The Eads Banquet. 



EADS AND THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. 

[Editorial N. O. Times-Democrat, December <?.] 

The dinner to Capt. Eads, Wednesday, December 6, was some- 
thing more than a recognition of his high position as the greatest 
engineer of the age. It was an expression of a hope and belief 
that through him and his measures, the Mississippi valley would 
attain, in a very few years, a still higher position as the granary 
of the world, and New Orleans secure that commercial supre- 
macy, so freely predicted for her years ago by the first political 
economists and statesmen of Europe. 

Capt. Eads saw in it " evidence of the deep-seated desire of 
the people of Louisiana to have the Mississippi cleared of every 
obstruction and rendered safe and navigable from St. Paul to 
to the Gulf." The company present, representing the commerce, 
shipping, manufactures and all the various interests of New Or- 
leans, warmly applauded this idea. Capt. Eads might have gone a 
step further and declared that the banquet meant — for so it did — 
a hearty approval of his jetties, a vote of confidence in them as 
it were, on the part of New Orleans, as represented by its lead- 
ing citizens, who took this occasion and this form of expressing 
their confidence and belief in them, now and forever. There 
were ship captains and owners present, who had taken their ves- 
sels, deep-laden, through the jetties ; merchants, who had sent 
to sea, in a single vessel, cargoes of eight thousand bales or 
more of cotton, and all these bore testimony to Capt. Eads' suc- 
cess. 

There were many things said at this dinner, amid the toasts 
and sparkling wit of the evening, that might well be preserved 
and remembered — prophesies uttered that will soon be chrystal- 
ized into as solid and glorious realities as the jetties themselves. 

How long and earnestly we sighed for these jetties or for some 
relief or escape, a few short years ago, while a blockade of mer- 
chant vessels at the Passes wrought more damage to our com- 
merce than even Farragut's fleet had done? Then was the 
day when New Orleans might well have put on mourning for its 
departing glories. Yet this was Less than ten years ago. 
A commercial revolution has occurred in the meanwhile, as great 



Report of the Proceedings. 33 



as that the Suez Canal has wrought, a peaceful revolution, reach- 
ing every portion of our own country and every part of the 
world. It is underrating the jetties and the Mississippi to say 
that they have increased the sum the Western farmer is receiv- 
ing for his wheat ; they have done more than this — they have 
actually cheapened the cost of living the wide world over. 

In this short space of time the jetties have been built and 
deep water secured to the city. The government to-day recognizes 
the duty that now devolves upon it to improve the entire river, that 
the people of the Northwest as well as those of the South may 
share the advantages of deep water to the sea. When this is 
done — and a glance at the report of the Biver Commission will 
show that it will require but a few years, if Congress is gener- 
ous — this revolution will indeed be complete, and the Missis- 
sippi valley will then be the centre of population, of wealth, re- 
sources and productions — and New Orleans its capital, its port 
and its metropolis. 

Even the railroads see this. They no longer give New Or- 
leans the " go-by," but every line and syndicate in the country 
now seeks an outlet here, looking forward to the time when their 
New Orleans branches will be the most profitable portion of 
their roads, when the railroads will be allies to the river, and 
bring frieght to it to be transported on its waters to our city. 

It requires an imaginative mind to picture the brilliant future 
ahead. When Sheridan, in his enthusiasm, spoke of the many 
millions of inhabitants for the valley in the early future, he 
scarcely exaggerated. They will come when the river is im- 
proved and navigable from St. Paul to the Gulf. Half the work 
is done already, for the jetties are completed and the work of 
river improvement begun under the most auspicious conditions. 

It is most fitting that New Orleans should do honor to Eads. 
He came to her with rich promises and with heartiest declara- 
tions of friendship ; he was received with coldness and his 
prophesies were listened to with incredulity. He persevered in 
the face of obstacles that would have daunted most men, and 
when at last his every prediction had been fulfilled, and the bar- 
rier which had obstructed the commerce of the vallej- for ages 
was swept utterly away, the hearts of all our people went out to 
5 



34 The It ads Banquet. 

him in grateful thanks, and they felt and feel that the debt they 
owe him, in common with all the people of the most magnificent 
and fertile domain under the sun, can never be repaid, much less 
expressed in words. What a grand and imposing figure is this 
man — small in stature, but a giant in mind — whose marvelous 
conceptions are only equaled by his splendid achievements, and 
how like pigmies seem those who from envy, malice, or motives 
still more base, attempt to malign his character or belittle his 
work ? 







Report of the Proceedings, 35 



THE JETTIES 



A Complete Refutation of the Cincinnati Commercial's Stale 

Slanders. 



Capt. W. H. Heuer, of the United States Engineers, Answers 
Specifically the Points Made. 



On Friday, October 1, 1882, the Cincinnati Commercial 
published an editorial entitled the* "Modern Mississippi Bub- 
ble," strongly denouncing the jetties. In the course of its ed- 
itorial the Commercial quotes from the testimony of Capt. "W. 
H. Heuer, given in this city before the Congressional Investigat- 
ing Committee. 

Saturday a Times-Democrat reporter called on Capt. Heuer 
and showed him the article referred to. After reading it, Capt. 
Heuer said: 

" Well, these are the same charges that the Commercial per- 
sists in making, notwithstanding the fact that they have been 
repeatedly shown to be false. However, as you desire it, I will 
reply to each paragraph containing specific charges, and point 
out the incorrectness of the charges." 

These paragraphs, with Capt. Heuer' s answers, are as fol- 
lows: 

The Commercial asks, first : 

" Is there a member of Congress who will dare to offer a res- 
olution of inquiry why the government pays for 30 feet naviga- 
ble water from New Orleans to the sea, when there is only 25 
feet?" 

Capt. Heuer stated in reply to this question : 

"The government does not pay for 30 feet of navigable water 



36 The Eads Banquet. 



from New Orleans to the sea. There are 25 9-10 feet of deep 
water in the shoalest part of the channel in South Pass and 26 
feet in the jetties, with a width of 200 feet." 

The Commercial — It is precisely the additional live feet of 
water at the mouth of the Mississippi that we should have, if 
the river is to be improved. Why is it not furnished when it is 
paid for? 

Capt. Heuer — There are the additional live feet at the jetties 
which the law requires and which the government pays for. 

Commercial — No member of Congress will presume to rise in 
his place and argue that the 30 feet between the jetty walls are 
the 30 feet that were desired and expected. It is the water in 
the channel beyond that counts. 

CV.pt. H. — The 30 feet depth between the jetty walls is ex- 
actly what the law requires, and the w^ater in the channel be- 
yond is more than 30 feet deep. 

Commercial — The 30 feet that we have been paying for is 30 
feet from New Orleans to the sea. What is the difference to the 
public how many feet are in the jetties, if there are only 25 feet 
on the bar? 

Capt. H. — The government has never paid for 30 feet from 
New Orleans to the sea. There is no 25 feet depth on the bar; 
there are 25 feet on the mud lumps beyond the ietties, but be- 
tween these mud lumps there is a channel with a least depth of 
30 feet, and this deep channel is nearly 300 feet wide. 

Commercial — The enthusiastic satisfaction of the merchants 
and press of New Orleans, with the fraud that fixes forever the 
inferiority of that city to New York by Hiye feet of navigable 
water, is something we do not like to account for. 

Capt. H. — There is no 30-foot channel to New York, hence 
there is no difference of five feet between vessels entering New 
Orleans and New Y r ork. Any vessel which can get to New Y^ork 
on account of draught can get to New Orleans. 

• Commercial — The equality of New Orleans with New York is 
what has been paid for, and it has not been obtained. The dif- 



Report of the Proceedings. 37 

f erence between 25 feet and 30 feet of navigable water is enor- 
mous. 

Capt. H. — No equality has been paid for. 

Commercial — The great modern steamers, such as run to New 
York, cannot get to New Orleans under the Eads false pretenses 
and New Orleans is a city subject to a fraud, and is so low down 
and far gone as to howl with enthusiasm for it. There is no 
New Orleans journal that will republish this article and attempt 
to reply to it. The truth is in it, and they flee from the truth as 
if they had been scared by the devil, and take refuge in misrep- 
resentations. 

Capt. H. — These two paragraphs contain such ridiculously 
false statements that they are not worth noticing. 

Commercial — The claim is obstinately made that the jetties 
are a wonderful success. They are an obvious failure according 
to the facts that break through all subterfuges. 

Capt. H. — This is absolutely false. The jetties are a wonder- 
ful success. Where they now stand was once a bar, with only, 
an eight foot channel through it. 

Commercial — Here is matter contained in the testimony of the 
engineer in charge of the jetties, Capt. Heuer, before the Con- 
gressional Committee of Investigation : 

Capt. H. — My testimony as quoted below is badly garbled. 

The testimony of Capt. H., as published in the Commercial 
is as follows : 

" Mr. Eads was required to secure a depth of 26 feet. He has 
not maintained that depth. He does not maintain that depth. 
The least depth is 25 9-10. It is never 26 feet in depth below 
the average low tide. 

" There are three mud lumps outside of the jetties. One of 
these lumps is located in the prolongation of the axis of the 
channel or jetties, with a channel on either side. The depth of 
water on the crest of the mud lumps referred to is 16 feet. The 
boat touched on this. Mr. Heuer said that he stated to the com- 
mittee yesterday that bars have formed outside of the jetties. 

" There would be shoaling if the use of dredges was aban- 
doned in the passes, and Mr. Eads could not maintain the 200- 



38 The Eads Banquet. 



foot channel in the jetties, 26 feet in depth, if he did not use 
them." 

In explanation of this testimony, as reported, Capt. Heuer 
states : 

First — Mr. Eads was required to obtain, not secure, a depth of 
26 feet before he was paid for his work ; he got that depth be- 
fore he got his money for it. He has practically maintained 
that depth ever since. In one little spot in the pass ( not jet- 
ties) he has only 25.9 feet. The law does not say he shall main- 
tain 26 feet in the pass. 

Second — Only one mud lump has 16 feet depth on its crest ; 
the other two much more. As the boat on which the soundings 
were made only drew nine feet, she could not have touched on 
any lump (she did not touch at all), having at least a depth of 
16 feet. The least depth of water found on any mud lump was 
29 feet. 

Third — The last paragraph of the testimony is very true. I 
said the 26 feet deep channel might not remain two hundred 
feet wide; this would narrow and deepen in some places and 
widen in others. The law specifies a least width of two hun- 
dred feet. 

Commercial — The plain truth about this is that the jetties, 
which have cost millions, are not worth a malediction. They 
are positively in the way. The time will come when they must 
be removed as an obstruction to navigation, or the river entered 
by the old Southwest Pass. 

Capt. H. — This is bosh. The jetties have paid for themselves 
ten times over already. 

Commercial — Capt. Heuer distinctly confesses that there are 
mud lumps with but 16 feet of water on them, right between the 
jetties and the deep water, and that the alleged channel is kept 
open by dredging. And yet we doubt whether there is a member of 
Congress who has the courage to present this fact to the nation 
upon his responsibility as a representative of the people. The 
jetties are a flagrant fraud. 

Capt. H. — He confesses to one mud lump with 16 feet depth 
on, but the committee didn't find it. The testimony that there 
is a channel 30 feet deep, and nearly 300 feet wide along side 






Report of the Proceedings. 39 

this lump is evidently suppressed. The channel is not kept open 
by dredging — this is done to maintain the legal width of 200 
feet. If the channel was 199 feet wide, Mr. Eads would not get 
paid for maintaining a 200-foot wide channel. 

Commercial — The modern system of dredging is wonderfully 
adapted to the opening of the mouths of the Mississippi, and 
to it is to be attributed all that there is of actual improvements. 

Capt. H. — The government dredged at Southwest Pass and 
Pass a-1' Outre for years, and never succeededin either getting or 
maintaining anything like the depths now carried through the 
South Pass. 

Commercial — The miserable, fraudulent jetty business should 
be abandoned, and the method of dredging by steam suction al- 
lowed to do its perfect work and have the credit for what it does. 

Capt. H. — No suction or other dredge has worked at this im- 
provement for several months. 

In conclusion, Capt. Heuer said: 

" The Commercial's correspondent was on board and furnished 
with copies of the soundings; in fact, saw the soundings made 
in the jetties, on the so-called bar, and in the Pass itself; he saw 
the lead line measured by the Congressional Committee, and 
knew that the man who cast the lead was sworn to give accurate 
soundings; he also had access to and was shown copies of the 
law denning exactly what depths and widths of channel the law 
required in the pass and jetties; he also knew from explanations 
and maps on board the exact condition of the pass and jetties, 
and what changes had taken place in them. 

"Every vessel that has been aground in the jetties, on the so- 
called bar beyond the jetties, or in the South Pass above the 
jetties, has been out of the channel, and her position was accu- 
rately located. In some cases they were 500 feet distant from 
the channel." 




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